There's no such thing as a break for coaches in college basketball anymore. Immediately following the national championship, Dusty May and others are on the phones trying to recruit the portal.
Three programs already appear to be separated from many others on day one of the offseason, all of them in the Big Ten. The conference swept the college football, men's college basketball, and women's college basketball championships this season, a sign that they are rising to become the premier conference in college sports.
Program #1: Michigan State Spartans
Tom Izzo will be losing key pieces of his frontcourt in Jaxon Kohler (12.5 ppg and 8.9 rpg) and Carson Cooper (11.1 ppg and 7.1 rpg). Aside from that, the only other departure as of Tuesday, April 7th is Trey Fort, who averaged 4.2 ppg on 10 minutes per game last season.
Jeremy Fears appears to be returning to East Lansing next season. He will possibly be the best point guard in the country, along with garnering hype for being a Big Ten Player of the Year and National Player of the Year candidate.
Michigan State is set to return all of the following players:
- Jeremy Fears (32.4 minutes/game)
- Coen Carr (29.2 minutes/game)
- Jordan Scott (20.8 minutes/game)
- Kur Teng (17.5 minutes/game)
- Divine Ugochuckwu (16.1 minutes/game)
- Cameron Ward (15.3 minutes/game)
On top of this, Kaleb Glenn, an FAU transfer from last season who redshirted due to injury, will finally play minutes for the Spartans. He averaged 12.6 ppg and 4.8 rpg for the Owls two seasons ago and is expected to be a critical role player next season.
Don't think Tom Izzo hasn't hit high school recruiting hard either. The class is ranked 5th overall and is headlined by 7-footer Ethan Taylor (ranked 28th on 247Sports), guard Jasiah Jervis (ranked 33rd on 247Sports), and guard Carlos Medlock Jr. (ranked 46th on 247Sports).
The question with the Spartans will be how they replace the frontcourt of Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper. Ethan Taylor has big shoes to fill, but Coen Carr is also an excellent rebounder despite being 6'6. If Izzo opens up to the portal, this could be one of the most well-rounded teams heading into next season.
Program #2: Illinois Fighting Illini
Brad Underwood has the Fighting Illini rolling heading into next season. They are set to lose freshman phenom Keaton Wagler (17.9 ppg, 5.1 rpg, and 4.2 apg), veteran guard Kylan Boswell (12.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.0 apg), and Ben Humrichous (5.8 ppg and 3.9 rpg), but can return everyone else, including:
- David Mirkovic (29.5 minutes/game)
- Andrej Stojakovic (26.3 minutes/game)
- Tomislav Ivisic (25.4 minutes/game)
- Jake Davis (19.6 minutes/game)
- Zvonimir Ivisic (17.2 minutes/game)
Two developmental pieces in Mihailo Petrovic and Jason Jakstys will also return. On top of all this, Illinois has two top 60 recruits coming in: Quentin Coleman (ranked 34th on 247Sports) and Lucas Morillo (ranked 59th on 247Sports).
While Keaton Wagler's explosiveness and Kylan Boswell's leadership will be tough to replace, Illinois already has a multitude of options ready to step up, and Brad Underwood hasn't even hit the portal yet. Illinois can very easily carry the momentum of its Final Four run into portal recruiting and preparation for next season.
Program #3: Michigan Wolverines
Breaking news: the national champions are expected to be very good again next season. Michigan will lose a lot, including the departures of Yaxel Lendeborg (15.1 ppg and 6.8 rpg), Roddy Gayle (7.3 ppg and 3.3 rpg), Nimari Burnett (8.2 ppg and 2.8 rpg), and Will Tschetter (3.5 ppg and 1.9 rpg).
However, it's safe to assume Dusty May will be able to convince one- if not both- of Morez Johnson (13.1 ppg and 7.3 rpg) and Aday Mara (12.1 ppg and 6.8 rpg) to return to Ann Arbor next season, considering the success of Yaxel Lendeborg's recruitment.
On top of the potential frontcourt returns, Michigan is also set to return:
- Elliot Cadeau (27.3 minutes/game)
- Trey McKenney (22.1 minutes/game)
- LJ Cason (18.6 minutes/game)
Assuming LJ Cason will be healthy enough to return next season, Michigan will be returning four or five players who averaged 18+ minutes per game on that championship squad. Dusty May is also bringing in three top 50 recruits, including 5-star Brandon McCoy (ranked 14th on 247Sports), Quinn Costello (ranked 44th on 247Sports), and Lincoln Cosby (ranked 45th on 247Sports).
While it appears Michigan will take a step back next season, a step back means they rejoin the rest of the country after being by far and away the best last season. Let Dusty May work his magic in the portal, and the Wolverines will be right back near the top heading into next season.
Three-headed monster brewing?
Michigan State, Illinois, and Michigan all seem to be entering next season as national championship contenders. All three are returning a lot, bringing in notable high school talent, and still have room to hit the portal to round out their rosters.
Other contenders in other conferences are bound to emerge as the offseason progresses, but a major storyline heading into next season could be how good the Big Ten is setting up to be. This could very well be an iron-sharpening-iron conference, with Michigan State, Illinois, and Michigan all pushing for 1 seeds.
The Big Ten had five top 4 seeds in the NCAA Tournament this past season. On top of the big three, Ben McCollum is back at Iowa, USC has a top 10 recruiting class, Matt Painter will keep Purdue alive and well, and Ohio State is looking to build off a strong finish. Mick Cronin, Fred Hoiberg, and Greg Gard have a lot to replace, and Indiana, Maryland, and Minnesota are looking to make jumps with their second-year head coaches.
The Big Ten seems to easily be on track to hit the five top 4 seeds mark again. The question will be, can the SEC, Big 12, ACC, or anyone else compare to how mighty the Big Ten is setting up to be?